Renew Anti-Violence Law To Save Women's Lives

EDITORIAL

Violence Against Women Act has protected women, changed attitudes for nearly two decades

(Paul Lachine illustration )

April 24, 2012

The Violence Against Women Act has protected women for nearly two decades. It has changed laws and attitudes on sexual violence. It has saved billions more than it's spent to prevent domestic abuse. It's strengthened rape laws in all 50 states. It's been reauthorized twice.

So it's greatly disappointing that reauthorization is being fought along partisan lines, like so many other battles at the Capitol involving women's rights.

This time, the issue isn't so much the money — at $2.2 billion over five years, it's not a big target for Washington. Rather, Republicans accuse Democrats of adding measures to the bill they consider deal breakers. Those include protections for gay victims of domestic abuse, help for immigrants (legal and illegal) and clarifying the law to allow tribal authorities to arrest non-Indians accused of abusing American Indian women on tribal lands.

The additions improve an already effective law. No woman, no matter what her sexual orientation or address, should be turned away from its protections.

A proposal offered by Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut on cyber-stalking should also be added to the bill. Sen. Blumenthal points out that men have used the anonymity of the Internet to harass, spy on, stalk and bully partners, ex-girlfriends or ex-wives, putting them in grave danger. His bill would make such behavior illegal, which it does not now do explicitly enough.

The Violence Against Women Act has the support of all the Democrats and some Republicans in the Senate, as well as 47 state attorneys general. Yet the conservative Concerned Women for America opposes it. The Wall Street Journal quoted CWA spokeswoman Janice Crouse as saying the law "pits husbands against wives." Well, yes — but only if one partner is trying to assault the other.

This law saves lives, and could save more if approved with the needed protections.